NA TURE 



421 



THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1909. 



.1 SEW ENCYCI.OF.EDIA OF AGRICV LTV RE. 



Encyclopaedia oj Ai;riciilli(rc by the Most Eminent 

 Authorities. 3 vols. Edited by C. E. Green and 

 D. Young. Vol. i., pp. xii + 582. ^'ol. ii., pp. vii + 

 536. Vol. iii., pp. viii + 633. (Edinburgh and 

 London : W. Green and Sons, n.d.) Price 20.?. net 

 per volume. 



THE increasing interest taken in agricultural 

 matters is in no way better shown than by the 

 number of bo<")ks that have recently been issued. Apart 

 from a host of text-books, at least three large and 

 expensive works of reference have been published 

 within quite a short period. It is a good thing that 

 the demand for such works exists ; certainly the 

 present-day farmer stands in need of all the assistance 

 he can get. "There never was a time," say the 

 editors very truly in their preface, " when accurate 

 systematised knowledge regarding the best agricul- 

 tural methods was more urgently required than now." 

 The increased cost of labour, and the rising charges 

 on land, make it absolutely essential that the farmer 

 should adopt every labour-saving device, and every 

 scheme for reducing the cost of production and for 

 getting the maximum return from his land or his 

 beasts. The object of the volumes before us is " to 

 serve a great use in the way of spreading an accurate 

 knowledge of agricultural science and of the best 

 methods of agricultural practice." 



.\ careful perusal of a number of the articles 

 shows that the work is intended for those taking 

 a general interest in the subject, rather than for 

 the student who is specialising or the expert. 

 The articles are usually too short to allow of much 

 detail, and in some cases the writers have aimed 

 chiefly at showing the bearing of the subject in 

 hand on ordinary farm practice. As a rule, the 

 articles are written in a style that will appeal to the 

 practical man, and they are eminently calculated to 

 arouse his interest in the subject ; in some instances 

 a list of standard works is given from which fuller 

 information can be obtained. 



The practical matters are in the hands of such 

 capable men as Messrs. Primrose McConnell, John 

 Speir, John Wrightson, W. J. Maiden, and others, and 

 are clear, concise, and to the point, giving good 

 accounts of the best practice ; we need only mention 

 the articles on ploughs, drainage, forage crops, and 

 potatoes. Live stock recei\-es due attention, and 

 in addition to the ordinary descriptions, we are 

 given admirable reproductions of photographs of 

 good beasts; indeed, these illustrations are quite 

 a feature of the work. The principles of breed- 

 ing are ably dealt with by Prof. Cossar Ewarl, and 

 the bearing of Galton's and Mendel's laws on breed- 

 ing practice is indicated. There are probablv no more 

 skilful stock breeders in the whole world than those 

 of the British Isles, but their success has hitherto 

 been more the result of inborn genius than of educa- 

 tion ; indeed, the stock breeder will commonlv assert 

 NO. 2050, VOL. 79] 



that science is of no use for his work. Prof. Ewart 

 shows the fallacy of this position, and gives some 

 illustrations of the value of Mendel's laws in practice. 

 It has long been recognised, he states, that blue 

 .\ndalusian fowls never breed true. However care- 

 fully bred, only about half the offspring are blue, 

 while the other half are pure black or white with 

 black splashes. Yet when the blacks and white 

 splashed are crossed, they yield blue Andalusians. 

 These facts, at one time thought so contradictory, 

 are, of course, in strict accordance with law, and 

 indicate the hj'brid nature of the blue Andalusian. 



Direct practical application of Mendel's law is sug- 

 gested in rejuvenating strains showing signs of 

 deterioration. It has hitherto been customary to 

 bring in new blood from a closely related breed, so 

 that the first crosses resemble the parents, e.^. in 

 rejuvenating the Chartley herd a Welsh race was used, 

 and the crosses were very like the old Chartleys. A 

 certain number of the Chartleys were also crossed 

 with white Highland cattle, and the first crosses did 

 not resemble Chartleys, so that this method was not 

 regarded favourably by the practical man. However, 

 by mating Highland-Chartley bulls with Highland- 

 Chartley heifers it may be confidently anticipated that 

 a certain proportion of the offspring will resemble 

 the Chartleys but have some of the Highland stamina. 

 Prof. Ewart also goes fully into telegony, and into 

 the persistent hypothesis of " maternal impressions," 

 and shows that no experimental evidence can be ad- 

 duced in favour of either. 



The botanical subjects are dealt with by Prof. 

 Percival, and, needless to say, his treatment is 

 admirable. Insect pests are described by Dr. Mac- 

 Dougall. 



On looking down the list of contributors we notice 

 some very curious omissions; it includes no bacteri- 

 ologist, no chemist except the dairy chemist, and no 

 geologist. The articles on these subjects have been 

 written by practical agriculturists. The experiment 

 was a bold one to make, and has not turned out a 

 success; it has resulted in several poor articles 

 and in a host of errors which greatly mar the 

 value of the work. The general article on 

 bacteriology, for instance, is obviously the work 

 of an amateur who has "got up " the subject 

 from a text-book; there is a good deal of talking 

 round the subject, but we never get anywhere; 

 the reader feels unsatisfied, and if this were a fair 

 presentment of the subject, would be disposed to 

 agree with the statement that " the subject of soil 

 bacteria is not likely to enlist the attention of prac- 

 tical men." The bacteriology of the manure heap has 

 been altogether too much for our author, and after a 

 vain struggle with " aerobic and anaerobic, nitrous, 

 nitric and ammoniacal bacteria, desulphuricans and 

 ferricans," he gives up the unequal contest. Wc are 

 told that bacteria " multiply w'ith extraordinary 

 rapidity, and occupy the entire bulk of the invaded 

 material in a few hours, or even minutes." 



There is an equal lack of treatment about the 

 chemical articles, but the te.xt-book used is older; 

 sulphuric and phosphoric acids are said to " contain 



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